We've had our hands on a Samsung Series 7 Windows 8 tablet PC for the past couple of weeks.

Microsoft just might have a winner on its hands with Windows 8.

But that's only if users are willing to forgive Microsoft for the many stupid design mistakes it made with its new operating system.

There's a big learning curve to Windows 8, just like there is for most new tech. The thing that's particularly infuriating is that so many of these things should be intuitive.

* You have to relearn stuff like how to close a file and an app. The familiar "X" is gone. Now you have to tap a window until it changes size, then drag it to the bottom of the screen, and for some reason, this doesn't always work with every app.

* You have to find the secret way to see your open windows: Grab a window, swipe it to the right, THEN swipe it back to the left until it magically changes into the open windows list.

* You can swipe screens to the right to move through each window in the order you opened them. But you can't swipe to the left to move forward.

Insane. Infuriating. But here's the thing. None of that matters. Because eventually, users will learn that stuff. And that's where the brilliance of Windows 8 comes in.

Because the full operating system, the one that runs on an Intel chip, is both a full-fledged PC and a tablet.

With this one device, a typical knowledge worker, student, or home-office worker has everything in one device.

The PC can run Windows 7 software (even if the new user interface for Windows 7 is a little clunky). They also have a touchscreen and portable device for playing games, reading,

If history is any indication, Windows 8 will be a failure. Why do I say this? Sandwiched between Windows 98 and Windows XP was the horrendous Windows Me. Likewise, sandwiched between Windows XP and Windows 7 was Windows Vista. I believe Windows 8 will follow suit. I think I’ll wait for Windows 9 to upgrade.

That interface is incredibly ugly ... theres absolutely no excuse for each to take up that huge amount of screen space, and completely obscure the background.

It's their new "Metro" look. It's supposed to be totally different so it can be used on tablets, phones, etc.

Can't say I like it much and am not sure if I will be adapting to Windows 8 any time soon. I can't see any reason why I would want to right now and do not have time to learn a whole new operating system.

It reminds me of Ubuntu's "Unity" design which I did not care for and dropped ... switching instead to Mint. Win 8 is going to have to really knock my socks off for me to even think about moving from Win 7, which IMHO, is the best operating system ever.

I’m a big ubuntu fan, but since they are going unity, I decided to give windows 8 a try in my lab. Once you get to know the tricks to get around in it, it is not too bad. I am tinkering with both windows8 and server 2012. With enterprises just now really getting into window7, I don’t see windows8 being adopted en mass, but some features of 2012, like their redesigned server manager are pretty cool. I don’t care for the blocky looking graphics though. I assume that is for the benefit of tablets.

Apple's lawyers have already made the claim that a swipe to the left to move forward is proprietary technology along with their copyrighted and innovative thin rectangle with rounded corners design. Also any design using contrasting white and black, differing shades of gray and or derivatives of red, yellow,and or blue also infringe on Apples copyrights.

My office switched to 7 recently, from XP. This included a change to the Office Suite. It is hilarious how many times I find myself staring at the screen looking for a function because they have removed the old drop down choices.

The one thing I like about 7 is the ability to "snap" windows to fit. Of course the program I need that for the most isn't 7 compatible and I am stuck running it in a virtual XP environment.

Win7 was bad enough with the ridiculous ribbon menues. And the ‘links’ are no longer obvious (as in a buttons). Instead, one has to move the mouse pointer all over the screen to ‘discover’ ahhhh! there’s the link. And their file explorer that jumps around and hides items is another problem.

Tile sizes can be changed if you wish. I’ve been using Win 8 for over 6 months and I really like it. Become more intuitive the more you use it and it is a great hybrid between the ipad and fully functioning PC.

Of course the program I need that for the most isn't 7 compatible and I am stuck running it in a virtual XP environment.

I have the Home Premium Win 7 on both my laptop and desktop. When I first started going from XP to Win7, I had several 'must have for me' programs that wouldn't work on Win7. I managed to tweak some of them and got them to work. A few others, however, wouldn't. Some of my 'must have for me' programs are no longer supported and I cannot find comparable replacements.

I hate upgrades, updates, NEW versions! They tend to break more things than they fix.

Their next legal claim will be that touching a computer screen, even if it produces no response by the computer, is a violation of their copyright, and spelling the word “apple” is a trademark violation.

Tile sizes can be changed if you wish. Ive been using Win 8 for over 6 months and I really like it. Become more intuitive the more you use it and it is a great hybrid between the ipad and fully functioning PC.

I have a Vista laptop and PC for years now (both Dell’s)...I have had zero OS problems with them. I just replaced the motherboard in the PC myself and got it back up and running without any major brain damage.

37
posted on 10/19/2012 8:50:53 AM PDT
by BreezyDog
(PLAN A: A Peaceful Restoration of the Republic.....PLAN B: A Restoration of the Republic)

First the screw up Office with that cryptic, useless “ribbon” interface. Now, they’ve decided to dumb down Windows with the Playskool interface. That is downright kindergarden-ish. Something I’d buy for a 2 year old!

39
posted on 10/19/2012 8:55:36 AM PDT
by meyer
(It's 1860 all over again - the taxpayer is the new "N" word)

2. It has better boot security, to prevent rootkit malware from taking over.

3. I has better printer setups.

On the other hand, it seems to be designed primarily for touch screen iPads, which I don’t use. I prefer a laptop on my desk, with a screen big enough for easy reading.

I believe you can get it from most computer makers with a keypad and mouse already installed, and also that you can fairly easily install the old desktop if you prefer it. I believe that Dell, for instance, will let you order it already set up with these options in place.

On the other hand, my experience with operating systems in the past has left me with two rules:

1. Don’t upgrade systems. Wait until you buy your next computer with the new system already installed.

2. Don’t be in a rush to buy a new system. Wait for the first Service Pack to fix any lingering problems that weren’t fixed in Beta.

MS is offering a very low price upgrade. But I would hesitate to take it. I’d rather wait a bit.

To be fair, both OS’s have the ability to revert to a more familiar interface. Win8 can look like Win7. However, you have more desktop options running Linux. I installed something called gnome-panel on the latest Ubuntu that gets back fairly close to the classic Windows XP desktop look.

45
posted on 10/19/2012 9:05:37 AM PDT
by TexasRepublic
(Socialism is the gospel of envy and the religion of thieves)

2. It has better boot security, to prevent rootkit malware from taking over.2. It has better boot security, to prevent rootkit malware from taking over.

So goes the theory, but there have been complaints that what it really amounts to is locking down the hardware so people can't install an alternate OS like Linux. Granted, it's been a couple of months since I've been up to date on that kerfuffle, so maybe the concerns have been resolved.

48
posted on 10/19/2012 9:17:53 AM PDT
by kevkrom
(If a wise man has an argument with a foolish man, the fool only rages or laughs...)

“It’s a box of swithes. If it offends your delicate aesthetic sensibilities to look at it, buy somehting else.”

All computers are boxes of switches. We are discussing the merits of some new switches. People look at those switches often, so aestetics are part of the equation. This just happens to be an ugly box of switches. (I’m guessing it will be easy to customize and this is no big deal.)

Why are you personnally offended and behaving rudely over criticism of the appearance of an OS desktop? Were you on the design team?

49
posted on 10/19/2012 9:19:51 AM PDT
by Gil4
(Progressives - Trying to repeal the Law of Supply and Demand since 1848)

Disclaimer:
Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual
posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its
management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the
exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.